Heaven Sent
by TehWhiteMage
Summary: WA3 J/V? Now fugitives from the justice they fought to enforce, the 4 drifters are trying to stay alive and together, but even that's getting harder to do as time passes in the wasteland.


Heaven Sent

Chapter One: The Beginning of the End

By: Mi-Chan

Disclaimer: I do not own Wild Arms 3

They say that the person you **love** is the person you **die** for

But the person I **love** is the one I **live my life for**

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Footsteps sounded lightly though the ancient hallway, causing insects to swiftly skitter from the vibrations on the metal floor they called home. The bright, white lights that lit the walkway hummed with electricity; cutting through the thick silence of the primordial corridor like a knife. The sound of sole connecting with metal grew louder, and then stopped abruptly; the soft swish of a long lab coat barely heard over the drone of the lights. The acute beep of an access panel being used echoed down the abandoned passage, acknowledged only by the simple bugs and the intermittent balloon. 

            Nimble fingers quickly pushed in a 7 digit access code and the screen blinked once, illuminating the words, "ACCESS GRANTED: WELCOME DR. STRYFE" in bold, green letters on the panel monitor. The hiss of compressed air resounded through the area as the hydraulic lock slowly released its confined contents, opening the five layers of steel that guarded the doctor's life's works and accomplishments. The steam cleared and unveiled an ashen room, unsoiled and in use, contrary to the rest of the structure. Shoe soles clicked against steel and created a leisurely rhythm as the he walked across the massive room. Working his way across the metal grates that formed an elevated walkway around the whole corridor, the person known as "Dr. Stryfe" leaned on the metal ledge and stared at the center of the room.

            In the heart of the insipid space was a single cylinder that had various machines and panels hooked up to it. The cylinder was made of a thick, transparent material and stretched 12 feet in the air. It was roughly 5 feet in diameter and was filled with a colorless liquid that was pumped in through the bottom of the chamber. Normally, the compartment was empty and the experiments were preformed inside smaller areas, but for the past few months, this tube was occupied by a young girl who was captured by his master.

            Sighing, the doctor took off his glasses and rubbed the non-existent dirt off their thin frames. The sight of this girl made warning bells go off in the back of his head, making him uneasy and paranoid every time he looked at her. He prided himself as a young man who lived through many hardships and was afraid of nothing, but something strange and powerful about this girl shook him to his very core. Eying her through the corner of his sapphire eyes, he stared at her for a moment, then turned around and shuddered lightly.

'Staring at her for more then a second makes me feel nauseous… It's as if there's another being aside from that girl inside the chamber…'

            Shaking his thoughts off as stress, he padded over to the nearest control panel and sat down, skimming over the latest data collected from the specimen. The screen in front of him blinked and various charts and records that consisted of blood types and nano-machine counts blinked before his eyes and reflected off his glasses. He swiveled on his chair and walked over to a machine that was printing out paper. Quickly examining the various lines on the crisp paper, he stopped suddenly, and his eyes skimmed over a small section of the lines that recorded her brainwave activity. His blue eyes grew wide and he eyed the girl floating inside the chamber warily and saw a trail of bubbles spring from her closed mouth.

            Hastily shoving the papers back on the machine, he ran to the tiny lift that connected the upper level to the lower level that housed the specimen chamber. Stryfe walked briskly towards the cylinder and stared at the girl curled into a fetus position. Her ivory skin was unclothed as she floated naked inside the panakeia fluid that supplied oxygen to her blood directly. He stood there for an eternity, staring at the supposedly unconscious girl, examining her peaceful face and the graceful slope of her back.  He narrowed his eyes and walked towards one of the machines attached to the girl's cylinder and typed furiously on its controls, glaring sourly at the monitors as he worked diligently. He glanced at the monitor next to it and typed in a small command as it blinked to life, showing a recording of the room with the specimen chamber inside.

            The time was shown in the lower right corner of the screen and the girl's vital signs and brainwaves were shown on the lower left. Everything was perfectly normal; the specimen was unconscious, the panakeia fluid was being circulated correctly. Everything was 'condition: green.' He sighed and ran a hand through his short brown hair.

'The readings must have been wrong. I should go recalibrate the-'

            The image on the screen derailed his train of thoughts. The timer stood still and all the sensors froze as though time had stopped. He furrowed his brows and then typed on the keyboard again, making sure that he was viewing the correct file. The screen froze and lines flashed horizontally across the screen, blurring the picture completely then subsiding, and then blurring it once more. The clicking of keys ceased as Dr. Stryfe looked up and saw the girl move slowly inside the cylinder, lazily stretching from her fetus position. She lifted her head as if in a daze and mouthed out a single syllable word, rubbing her eyes as if she was awakening from a deep sleep. Azure orbs scrutinized the frozen timer again, and then returned to the waking girl. 

'This must be some kind of mistake. I bet that woman altered the data just to-'

Suddenly the picture blurred completely, and for a split second, the hazy figure of a cat appeared in front of the cylinder; standing on its hind legs and placing its paws over the girl's hands.

'… A cat?!'

            He blinked once, making sure that he wasn't dreaming, and sure enough everything was perfectly normal. The timer was running and her vital signs were being scanned correctly. Everything was 'condition: green' as it was a few minutes ago. He stared at the video file bewildered and watched the recording again; almost missing the cat when he blinked his eyes.

 "Dammed Guardians."

            Stryfe glared at the slender woman who stood behind him coldly and faced the monitor screen; azure eyes clouded with malice. As the woman opened her mouth to speak again, he quickly paused the recording just as the cat appeared and walked away, leaving the woman with her mouth hanging open. As he passed by the metal lift, he grabbed a print-out of the paused picture; completely ignoring the female vouching for his attention. The woman lowered her resolute green eyes at the retreating figure of Dr. Stryfe and huffed as the thick door opened, her so called 'partner' withdrawing from the pallid alcove.

'Bastard's still jealous I guess.'

            Turning on her heel, she reclined wearily into the chair he occupied moments before and faced the monitors. Taking a pen from her breast pocket, she twirled it between her fingers as she scrutinized the paused picture of the Time Guardian, Dam Dairam. The pen flew from her fingers and her eyebrow twitched in annoyance as she sluggishly stood up from her seat and reached out to snatch the pen off the ground. Her heels clicked against the metal grate as she chased after the rolling writing utensil, and finally grabbed it from the ground, exclaiming a childish, "Ah ha!" as her fingers surrounded its smooth surface. An ominous shadow covered her kneeling body and she slowly looked up, her green eyes widening at the tall, armor clad figure. She immediately downcast her eyes and bowed politely, mumbling incoherent apologies that went unheard and unnoticed by the armor clad man as he ignored her, turning his attention to the specimen chamber and the girl with flowing brown hair. The young woman who resisted his attacks so ferociously months earlier floated unconscious and completely helpless before him. Smirking at the fact that the human who defeated him was now at his mercy, he lowered his gaze to the insect that was mumbling at his left. Though the woman was of his own spawn, she was still unexposed to the nano-machines that supplied his inhuman strength and vitality. But once she outlived her use, she too would also become another soul that he sent back to Filgaia. He tensed at the fact that he needed the sniveling swine to accomplish his plans, but he checked his anger and looked back up at the brown haired girl.

"What of her progress?" 

The woman stopped her apologies and immediately gave him the subject's vital signs with a curt, monotonous voice. "The nano-machines were injected into the panakeia fluid as you ordered my lord, but no changes to her genetic makeup have been observed. There is a strange concentration of tissue on her back from where her wound was, but it's only the result of the trauma caused by the abrasion. Aside from that there have been no changes."

"And why not?" The man's baritone voice echoed through the room, irritation and anger apparent in his tone.

The woman's green eyes widened with fear for a moment, then shot back down to the floor as she wrung her hands and recited the data. "Apparently my lord, the panakeia fluid is being filtered by an unknown force. The area around her has a 0% concentration of nano-machines. Dr. Stryfe increased the nano-machine to panakeia fluid ratio and yet there has been no change in the subject's gen-"

"And why not?" The figure said gruffly, turning to face the shaking woman with malice dripping from his voice.

"Apparently, the girl has guardians invoked and-"

"Curse them!" The figure yelled, walking away from the woman and the specimen. He would not allow his plans to be foiled again. Filgaia would belong to him and his brethren, and those who stood to oppose him would die with their silly notions of justice on their minds. 

            The sound of metal scratching against metal sliced through the shaking woman's eardrums, making her wince and cover her ears tightly. The noise echoed through the lab, reverberating through her head and tormenting her aching ears. Her head started to throb as the sound died off and she slowly squinted her green eyes open to see what caused the maddening noise. The caped figure she feared and pledged servitude to, was standing stationary in front of her, as though something was holding him back. As her leaf green orbs observed his posture further, she saw his solid frame shaking underneath the black armor that encased his whole body. As she opened her mouth to speak, he yelled and spun around, his hand glowing a strange blue hue that struck terror into her heart; ripping the thoughts from her mind and immobilizing her with fear.

"I know you're there, you meddling spirits! I'll rid you from this girl once and for all!" yelled the man as he spun around, black cape flapping behind him. The armor clad figure held his hand out in front of him, and the haunting blue aura grew to a blinding light that emanated from his palm. The already heavy atmosphere grew thick and the mysterious form grabbed the air; wrenching the Dark Spear from the pulsating blue aura.

 "You've spoiled my plans too many times you bastards!" Jumping up and extending the spear, the body of the man synchronized with the malevolent weapon as he attacked with a negative rainbow. The assault rained down on the cylinder and a white light flashed, signaling the construction of a protective barrier that blocked the attack and reflected it back at him, obliterating the half of the room that the black clad figure and the woman stood on.

            Screeching in fear, as the metal around her melted and boiled, she dove behind the wielder of the dark spear as he sheltered himself from the onslaught of his own attack. He lowered the barrier as the attack died down, his face twitching at the heat of the fires that raged to his right and left. Positioning the spear vertically above his head, he twirled it with ease and slammed the life devouring weapon into the ground. A spine tingling crack resounded through the remains of the lab as ice sprouted from the spear and shot out towards the fires. The ice squeezed the life from the fire and steam rose as the two opposing elements fought to gain superiority over the other, hissing and sizzling around the wielder of the Dark Spear and his vassal.

            A bright light shone from the specimen cylinder and a mass of light glowed through the mist, emitting a solemn and tranquil aura. Jade eyes stared at the shapeless being that was slowly forming into its material figure, widening as a pair of wings sprouted from the mass of light. Something soft and warm brushed against her cheek and the woman stared down with wide eyes at a pearl white feather resting gently in her lap. Shaking hands reached out and touched the satin smooth feather, reveling in its pureness and the holy aura it emitted. 

A painful tightness in her chest caused her too look back up at the light and she gasped slightly as the barrier that reflected the onslaught of the Dark Spear became visible as dust and debris settled over top of the intangible shelter. She cowered as her master roared, as he readied himself for another attack; swinging the spear back into a fighting stance. Stampeding towards the barrier, he stopped mid-stride as it caved in on itself, crushing everything near it but the cylinder that held the dammed girl. As the metal demon the falling barricade, she watched his hauntingly graceful steps as he swung the infernal weapon and positioned it like a javelin; taut and ready to impale the girl who floated serenely inside her panakeia filled prison. The spear plowed through the machines that encircled her cell, sending sparks and fire into the air. As the demonic weapon neared the chamber, it was roughly thrust away by an intangible force, sending the spear and its wielder, flying backwards. The metal demon quickly recovered and glared at the shapeless being that was slowly materializing into its true form. The long blade of a rapier was poised gracefully in his direction and the avatar of the Guardian Lord of Love hovered between him and the girl.

______________________________________________________________

6 Months before the Fateful Day…

 "So what do we do now? Lay low?" Gallows said as they stood behind one of the abandoned houses in Little Twister.

"Heh, we can do that just fine. You're the one who sticks out like a sore thumb" Jet said slyly as Gallows turned red and stalked towards him, grabbing the collar of the shorter male and hefting him off the ground a few feet.

"Care to say that again punk?"

"Yeah! Your fat ass sticks out like a-"

"Both of you stop it now!" A voice yelled out, and both men turned to face a girl with ember red hair. Shaking her head slightly she walked towards Gallows, telling him to put the white haired drifter down.

"You got it easy this time punk." Gallows said as he dropped Jet and walked towards his horse. Landing with a soft 'thud' on his feet, Jet glared at the Baskar's back and turned around, waving his gloved hand passively. "Hmph. I should be the one saying that _buddy."_

"What did you-"

"HEY! You're like little children did you know that!?" Virginia Maxwell sighed in exhaustion and tiredly looked at her green-haired comrade for help.

"Clive, can you give me a hand here?" She stuck her thumb towards the two arguing comrades. "I'm too tired to deal with these two right now." She spoke in such a weary voice that it slightly alarmed the elder drifter and edged him to tell her to rest on one of the many rock piles located in the town.

"Are you feeling alright Virginia? Maybe we should go take a rest in the inn or-"

"Clive you know we can't do that… There's hordes of people who would jump at the chance to get our heads." Jet interjected, coolly leaning against the rickety house and closing his eyes. "We've had no mess ups with any bounty hunters and it would be in our best interests if we keep it that way. And besides," He started softly, with a quick glance towards the resting girl, "I think we're all too exhausted to deal with any fights right now." Virginia smiled slightly at Jet and stood up, brushing the dust and sand off the front of her dress.

"You're right. Let's go do what we came here to do…" Her voice died off as the footfalls of several people sounded a few feet away from them. She looked at each of her friends in the eye and motioned with a flick of her head to the back gate of one of the houses. They silently complied and the party slowly crept behind one of the abandoned houses; their hands unconsciously reaching for their trusty ARMS as the footfalls sounded closer to their hiding spot.

            Blood thundered through her ears and her heart beat louder as each footstep fell closer and closer to where the 4 crouched silently. Virginia blinked her emerald eyes quickly and strained her ears for any noises.

"…don't think that they'd come to this dingy town." A shrill, high pitched and whiny voice of a man drifted to her poised ears and Virginia held her breath slightly, trying to catch more of their conversation.

"This is what my informant said! And this informant is never wrong ya know!"

"But we've checked Little Twister for a red headed girl and 3 other drifters and no one that fits that description has even passed through here in the past month or so!" A scratchy tenor voice interrupted a deep baritone and Virginia felt the body next to hers tense and heard the click of the Airgetlahm B/V2's safety being taken off. Slowly exhaling the breath that she subconsciously held her emerald orbs saw 3 shadows slowly inching towards their hiding spot and Virginia cocked her Bantorain 93R and Rapier Ez, reluctantly rolling out into the alley and aiming her pistols at their pursuers.

"Looking for me boys?" She said sweetly and skillfully shot out the 3 men's weapons. 

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Author's Notes: 

:: yawns & stretches :: 

I'm DONE with the first chapter… :: winces :: It's really late I know, I'm so sorry about that! :: burrows into her blankets :: I'm sorry! XD I'm too sleepy to apologize to the amount that I have to… :: slumps over and falls asleep on her keyboard :: I'll fix it later; I'm just posting this tentative piece of crap… ;

I'm half asleep and babbling again… Don't mind the author… :: falls asleep ::


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